User Reviews

Overall Rating:

Value Rating:

Submitted by
Ken Waido
a Audio Enthusiast

Date Reviewed: June 30, 2003

Bottom Line:

I have had the unit for a little more than a week, but I love it. I was looking for a way to convert my family (vacations, kids, etc.) VHS tapes to DVD. I investigated upgrading my computer and looked at DVD recorder options. I decided to go with the DVD recorder.

After a little bit of a learning curve, I found the unit easy to use. I just connected my VCR to one of the unit's analog input connections and record the tape to the unit's hard drive using the best quality recording speed (XP). I then edit the hard drive data into 2-hour programs, then further edit the 2-hour programs into additional programs (chapters), which I then name (title). After that is completed, I record back from the hard drive to a DVD-R disc using the SP recording speed. The quality of the images are equal to the original VHS tape, but I gain digital ability, such as, being able to jump from one program (chapter) to another. Plus, the DVDs are easier to store. Does anyone want to buy some old/used VHS tapes?

I have not tried this yet, but I can also connect my digital camera and directly record to the hard drive.

I purchased this unit after looking at a number of DVD and digital television recorders, including ReplayTV, TIVO and Philips units. The Panasonic includes both (1) a DVD recorder that can record on DVD-RAM disks (rewritable but only readable by special DVD players) and on DVD-R disks (write once, but readable by any DVD player once finalized), and (2) a hard drive that can store up to 52 hours of television shows at the lowest resolution mode. It is possible to copy shows recorded on the hard drive to either DVD-RAM or DVD-R. It is also possible to edit programs on the hard drive before copying them. You can also record directly onto the DVD drive. The unit contains one internal 125 channel cable tuner, so it is only possible to record one program at a time.

The Panasonic has a variety of useful features that makes it very comparable to a ReplayTV unit. You can watch a program as it is being recorded, or watch a pre-recorded show as another is being recorded at the same time. You may watch a show as it is being recorded either in real time, or by waiting to begin viewing until the live show is partly recorded, in "chasing" mode. When watching a pre-recorded program or watching in "chasing" mode, you may skip commercials manually using a "commercial skip" button that instantaneously advances the recording one minute at a time (unlike Replay TV, there is no automatic commercial skip feature). There is also a "timeslip" feature that permits you to instantly move forward or backward to any point in the recording (for example, you can tell the machine to go forward 20 minutes, and the recording will immediately advance to that point). Another useful feature is "renewal recording" -- set up your favorite shows to record each day or week, and the machine automatically records over the previous installment -- great for watching soap operas or other shows that you don't want to archive on disk, but often can't watch in real time.

Unlike TIVO or ReplayTV, there is no monthly subscription fee to pay, but as a consequence there is also no automatic programming feature. Programming the machine to record shows is done manually, just like with a VCR. "VCR Plus" programming is included.

While a variety of recording speeds are available for the hard drive and DVD recorder, for most purposes you'll want to use either the XP or SP modes --- the lower resolution modes produce noticeably flawed picture quality. The XP and SP modes are very watchable. In the SP mode, the hard drive can only store about 18 hours of programming. This seems to be enough for my family, but heavier television watchers might find the limitation restrictive. Panasonic could have doubled the hard drive storage without raising the unit price more than fifty dollars, and should have done so -- for this reason I don't give the unit highest marks for value.

The remote control is adequate, but poorly laid out, with some buttons hidden under a sliding cover (including the commercial skip button -- go figure). The manual is a confusing disaster -- expect to spend a fair amount of "hands on" time sorting out what this machine can do and how to do it.

Once you use this machine, you will never want to go back to either (1) a VCR or (2) watching commercial television live. The ability to skip commercials instantly will save you 15 to 18 minutes in an hour of television -- add that up for a week of TV viewing, even if you are only a moderate viewer, and the time savings are stunning. And unlike VCR tapes, DVDs used to archive shows you want to keep won't deteriorate or break over time.

Highly Recommeded.
The actual model year is 2002.
I bought this unit because of the following 3 features:
a) Built in HDD-Hard Disk Drive, with No Tivo or Sonic
Blue fees to pay!
b) Supports Progressive Scan utilizing the highly
regarded Faroudja/Sage De-Interlacing chip.
From what I've read and seen, looks like the
Faroudja/Sage and Sony handle conversion to
480P-Progressive Scan better than anyone else
at the moment. Fewer jaggies and mosquitos
compared to other conversion circuits.
c) Ability to record favorite shows onto DVD-R
and/or DVD-RAM. No more VHS tapes and their
lower image quality.
(Of course, you can't copy copy-protected
material - unless you have a savvy teenager
in the house, or you have Kramer model SG-9.
See http://www.kramerelectronics.com).